Something New
by Averell Torrent
Summary: He would prove them all wrong. Those who thought he was too weak to be accepted by any summon, he would show them all. He would become the greatest summoner of all. But his ancient bloodline draws the attention of an evil just as old. With the power of a god of darkness and shadow, he will battle the blinding light.
1. Chapter 1

**[A/N] Alright guys, this A/N is going in the first chapter of all my new stories. I have a large assortment of fanfics I've had in my back pocket for a while now, but I've been unable to find a beta for any of them. That being said, the ones I'm posting right now are all open to beta readers, and until I get one, they are HEAVILY reliant on feedback.**

 **This does mean that the ones that get more feedback will be worked on more. Honestly, I've got a few chapters written ahead for each, but I'm not going to keep working on fics that no one likes.**

 **Also, yes, this is part of the reason the TPOYB rewrite is taking so long. It is not the only reason, however. I doubt I would work on it any faster without these extra fics. I write these when I have time and don't feel up to taking on TPOYB or my original work. I'm only posting these three, I Chose Rapture, Something New, and Avatars, for the moment as my others are currently more of an outline than anything else.**

 **I do hope you enjoy these as they are ideas I've been toying with for a while and really feel they are unique and different. So if you're checking out one, check the others to see if they also interest you.**

 **Other than that, expect updates to be slow as with my other stories.**

 **Now as for my note about this fic in particular:**

 **So, I was a little disappointed. There are three Naruto/Shadow of the Colossus crossovers. Three. So much untapped potential! That being said, this in not just a crossover with SOC. There are plot elements taken from Ico and Last Guardian. But since I can only tag two…**

 **Anyways, if you aren't familiar with those, only with SOC, let me know and I'll try my best to describe the necessary events throughout the story. I hope you all enjoy.**

 ***Update to the AN***

 **IMPORTANT (if you haven't played ICO or Last Guardian) So, a friend recommended I do this for people who haven't played Ico or Last Guardian, like her. And it's stupid that I didn't think to do it sooner. I'm going to lay out the only real important information from those games in my story right here in the A/N just in case I fail to implement it well enough.**

 **The Queen - The main antagonist of Ico. She was cloaked in shadow and used shadow creatures similar to those in in Shadow of the Colossus. She tried to take over the body of her daughter to avoid death. In the end, the player kills her with the Queen's Sword, much like the one from SOC gained from the time trials, and her castle sinks into the ocean.**

 **The Master of the Valley - The main "antagonist" of Last Guardian. I use quote marks because the Master is a spherical construct with no obvious motivations other than to maintain its power. It uses signals to control suits of armor and giant flying creatures called Trico to capture children. The children become covered in strange markings consumed by the Master. The suits of armor receive the signals through blue horns on the helmets, similar to the horns of the Trico.**

 **The Nest - The setting of Last Guardian. Massive ruins in a crater/valley surrounded by sheer cliffs. The only way in or out is flight.**

 **And that's pretty much it. Should be anyways.**

* * *

 **SEVEN YEARS AGO**

 ** _"Can_** you put him on the contract or not, Shima?" Minato demanded.

Shima looked up at him like he was crazy. "We can, Minato, but having one so young on a summoning contract, what if he summons us by accident? What kind of havok could he cause?"

He spat up blood, his vision blurring as he looked over Kushina's shoulder at their son. "I don't care. Jiraiya and Tsunade are good people, but they're hardly responsible, especially with everything going on in Tsunade's life right now. He'll need someone to look after him when he's old enough."

"Please, Shima," Kushina pleaded. "He's a Jinchuriki. He'll need all the allies he can get."

Shima sighed and gave in. A scroll appeared in her hands.

Kushina smiled down at Naruto as she slumped over. "Watch over him," she whispered in her final moments.

* * *

 _ **Naruto**_ ran through the forest, tears trailing from his face. His fists and teeth were clenched in rage as voices ran through his mind.

' _You couldn't beat me even if you could summon.'_

' _Summon? What animal would choose the deadlast?'_

' _Mom says he'll always be alone.'_

"I hate them. I hate them all!" he cried out, stopping to sit under a tree. "They'll never believe in me. I'll show them!" He bit his finger and went through the summoning hand signs, wanting to summon anything, anything at all to show them how wrong they were.

Seals spread out around him before an ornate symbol glowed under his feet, a pillar of light shot into the sky, and everything went white.

* * *

" _ **You**_ have no right to the boy!"

Some _thing_ laughed, it's dual man and woman voices speaking in disjointed synchronicity. "We have every right to him. He is of our blood."

"You have no blood, Dormin!"

"We were fused with his ancestor. His is the greatest concentration of our power to appear since the laws changed and the seals were undone."

"He is signed to our contract!"

"And thou have done nothing to serve the boy. We could not. There was no pull, until now. He has tried to summon aid. We felt the pull.

"We couldn't help him until he called upon us."

"Thou could have reverse summoned him, taken him to Mount Myoboku to see how he fared. He may have summoned you through your contract, but we were called through his spirit."

"What do you want with the boy, dark creature?"

"Thou are just as the old civilisations were, confusing darkness for evil. Be gone."

* * *

 _ **Naruto**_ felt his ears ringing as he awoke. What had happened? He remembered...He remembered- He clutched at his head in agony as memories came back to him, the pain his body had felt when he had tried to summon something. Where was he?

He sat up, looking around to see an empty, white expanse. "Where am I?" he asked himself.

"Thou art in limbo." He turned to the voice, seeing a pale, horned figure. "We are Dormin."

"Dormin?" Naruto asked in confusion. "Are-are you my summons?"

"In a sense," Dormin said. A massive scroll formed next to him, shadows leaking through the seams. "The Shinigami, as thou know him, gave us this."


	2. Chapter 2

**[A/N] A bit of a longer chapter this time. This is going to be one of those chapters where things from Ico and Last Guardian tie in, so let me know if I do well adding it in.**

 **Also, I was considering changing the title. Let me know your thoughts, but I was thinking of perhaps going with 'The Collector'.**

* * *

 _ **"Long**_ ago, we protected quiet lands to the South. But, our power was split, out lands left in turmoil. We were betrayed." Domin said, their face looking solemn. "Milenia passed and we were freed, arisen anew. It was not to last. The boy who brought about our resurrection was pursued. Our bodies and souls were merged into one. When he died, we awoke in our home, with one known by many names. The God of Death. Thus we were given a task, to give our power to a successor. He gave us this scroll, saying he was unsure, but believed we may need it. Thou have called on us, pulling on our power hidden deep within thee. Our successor."

Naruto looked up at the figure in confusion. "I'm not sure I understood most of that," he said, scratching the back of his head.

Dormin approached him. "You shall, young one. You shall."

* * *

 _ **He**_ woke to the sound of people clamoring around him, people shouting orders. His eyes opened, looking up he saw the Sandaime Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, standing there.

Seeing him awake, the Hokage held up a double edged sword, the blade thinner in the middle than the rest. "What happened out in those woods, Naruto? Who attacked you? Where did this sword come from?"

Clearing the haze from his mind, Naruto sat up. "I wasn't attacked. It was…" He paused, memories returning to him. "My summon."

Hiruzen looked down at him. "What summon?" he asked. "Naruto, what did you summon out there?"

Looking confused, Naruto shook his head. He looked around for a moment, bringing a finger up and tearing it open with his teeth. Forming the proper sign, a small cloud of smoke and two toads appeared at the foot of his bed.

"Shima?" Hiruzen asked. "And Fukasaku? You two are Naruto's summons? Would you be able to tell me what happened in the forest? Where this sword came from?"

The toads shared a look as Fukasaku held up his hand. "I'm afraid we cannot answer those questions. We are not at liberty to discuss anything involving the boy's other summons."

Dumbfounded by the answer, Hiruzen looked back and forth between the two. "He has more than one? How did that happen?"

"We can't tell you much about it at all," Shima replied. "The most we are able to tell you is that his parents had him put on our contract before their death, and when he tried to summon, we were not the only ones to answer the call. Also, that sword belongs to Naruto."

Opening his mouth to speak, he paused, looking stern. "I see. And his wounds?"

"The stress of summoning two contracts unprepared," Fukasaku answered.

"You won't answer any other questions?"

"Not if they pertain to his other contract. It's forbidden by laws older than we are."

"I want more," Naruto said suddenly. Each of them turned to him. "I want more," he said again, starting to grin. "Not one but two. I've already proven them wrong." He sat up, his shoulders shaking with giggling. "I don't want to stop at two. I want more, so they won't ever mock me again. I'll be the greatest summoner ever!" His eyes seemed to dull after his announcement as he collapsed, falling again into unconsciousness.

* * *

 _ **Opening**_ his eyes, Naruto found himself again in the bright emptiness. "Dormin?" he called out.

"We art here."

He turned around, seeing the figure standing there. Grinning ear to ear, he waved. "I think I'm ready to learn from you. Even if I don't understand it all, tell me everything. Tell me about who betrayed you."

Dormin nodded. The world took shape, a bright valley with a large temple at the center and small ruins that dotted the landscape.

"It's beautiful," Naruto said.

"Once, it thrived. People lived here. And together, we could sometimes raise the dead, on certain occasions. There were two, we and another. We were of darkness, and she of light."

"She? Weren't they like you? Two people?"

"There was a time when they were. But they chose to ignore our dual natures. She sought greater power, showing a shaman how to imprison us, to tear our body apart and seal away our soul, taking what she could of our power for herself and convincing him we were the evil one."

Naruto looked down. "She was your friend? And she just betrayed you like that."

"We should have seen the signs. In lands to the west of our home, she had created a construct, the Master of the Valley, as she called it. It built up magical energy through sacrifices brought by enslaved creatures. We know not it's true purpose, or how it fell, but during our imprisonment, we could feel its corruption die."

"But what happened to her?"

"We know not. After the death of the boy, the one whom our soul was bound to, we were once again trapped in our shrine, limited in our sight of the outside world."

Naruto paused, yelling out in frustration as he tried to wrap his head around it all. "So that's when the Shinigami told you to find someone to succeed you?"

"Someone to claim our power, for us merge with again. Tis our only path to freedom, as we can no longer take physical form on our own."

"What-" Naruto paused, afraid of sounding selfish at being offered this power. "What else do I get from all this? Your power? Do I still stay…" He trailed off.

"Thine will remains. We shalt be a...passenger, not unlike…" Dormin gave pause, considering his words. "Our presence shall not affect your personality or mind, unless you change it willingly. That is, until we merge, then, our very beings shall become one."

"What happens then? What would I become?"

There was another pause. "We know not. But thou would be something new."

Turning away from the figure, Naruto sighed. He looked over to a series of waterfalls, finding a sense of peace in them. "What about the summoning contract. What exactly would I call upon?"

"Thou would summon the fragments of that which we no longer need. Our body." Twenty-four pillars of light began appearing across the land. "Parts of our body were given form, some fell before our resurrection, those who were left of our people trying valiantly to free us. As they died, we kept their spirits within us, allowing them to live on. But the fragments were great creatures, ones thou shalt find may assist thee."

Naruto gave a smirk. "Then let's get started, shall we!"

* * *

 _ **Hiruzen**_ sighed as he sat down before the council, setting his hat down on the table. "I will start," he said slowly, "by putting your fears to rest. It was neither an attack, nor the Kyuubi being released."

"I thought not," Tsume Inuzuka said. "It didn't feel anything like the Kyuubi did."

Danzo nodded. "That being said, what was it? Did the boy tell you anything useful?"

"That's the problem," Hiruzen replied. "I don't know what it really was other than Naruto's summon."

"So the boy tried a summoning jutsu?" Hiashi Hyuga asked. "What exactly did he summon?"

"And why didn't it reverse summon him to its home?" Shikaku Nara said. "Unless he was already on a contract, shouldn't he have disappeared temporarily?"

"He's on the toad's summoning contract," Hiruzen answered. "Apparently Minato and Kushina had him added to the contract before their death. But according to Shima and Fukasaku, the toad elders, he unintentionally summoned something else. And they couldn't tell me what that was."

"Couldn't? Or wouldn't?" Danzo asked.

"Couldn't. Their own words were that they were bound by ancient laws, laws that forbid them answering any questions I had."

"Why didn't Naruto answer those questions?" Tsume asked.

His face turned grim. "He told me that he could tell me what I wanted to know, but that his summon, whatever it is, asked him not to say. And he has taken that request to heart. That being said, I am ordering several ANBU and special Jounin to keep an eye on the boy, even more so than before."

* * *

 _ **Stone**_ grated against stone as statues seemed to move on their own, parting to reveal a doorway. Men in robes entered the chamber, a large throne room with stairs leading to the stone chair.

On the throne sate the statue of a woman with a sword pulsing with energy protruding from its chest. The forehead was cracked, small, blue horns wedged into the cracks.

Each of the men knelt before the statue. "My queen," one of them said. "We believe Dormin has finally returned."

The horns gave off a dull glow, the queen's eyes glowing with the same blue color. "Is that so?" a woman's voice radiated from the statue in an amused tone. "Then perhaps we do not need to wait, not as long as I believed. And the new Masters?"

The men shared a nervous look. "We are in the process of building them, but they are still years away from completion. Completing so many constructs is a slow and arduous task. Not to mention finding children that can fuel them."

"Do not be nervous now. I built the first, the Master of the Valley. I remember how long it took to create the first, and for it to become self sustaining. Take your time. You'll find that I'm not going anywhere."

He bowed deeper. "Yes, my Queen."


	3. Chapter 3

_**Days**_ had passed as Naruto was released from the hospital and convinced Hiruzen to let him keep the sword, even if it seemed a little large for the child. Even so, he had the blade strapped to his back as he walked up to the academy with a grin on his face.

" _Hey, Dormin, what should I summon first? Nothing too big, right? Which one was that again?"_

" _Naruto,"_ Dormin said from within his mind. " _It may be wise to not use the colossi yet. Even using that sword carries much risk, until thou art strong enough to pay the cost of thine actions."_

Naruto sighed. " _I know, I remember you saying that before. But what's the point of this being the one thing I have a leg up on them with if I can't use it?"_

" _Remember the toads."_

" _You mean the ones that could have helped me any time and_ didn't?" He thought about it, considering the point Dormin made. _"Fine. Will you train me with the sword, later?"_

" _We shall. But take heed and be calm, we know not what happened to the being of light. If they still exist, we are not strong enough to save you from her now."_

Naruto nodded to himself as he walked around to the class training ground where his class usually started their Thursdays. As he approached them, his classmates turned to him.

"Hey, Naruto. I heard you just got out of the hospital," Ino Yamanaka said.

"Really? Who'd the dead last piss off this time?" Kiba Inuzuka asked.

"No one," Naruto said. "I just had summons fighting over which contract I should use."

Iruka sent a glare at Kiba as he coughed the word 'bullshit'. Kiba shrugged at their instructor with a smirk.

Naruto opened his mouth, ready to challenge Kiba to a fight, but Dormin's words came back to him. Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself. "You know what, I'd prove it, but I'd hate for my summons to crush your pet, Kiba. So feel free to believe whatever you want. Come on Iruka, let's get on with the lesson."

* * *

 _ **Naruto**_ walked through the academy alone, headed towards the roof to eat. Passing one of the training rooms, he stopped, looking in to see Sasuke attacking the dummies. He stepped inside quietly, sitting down against the wall. He opened his lunch, taking a bite as he watched.

As Sasuke leapt into the air to kick one of the dummies in the head, Naruto said, "Hey Sasuke!"

Surprised at the new presence, Sasuke flew face first into his target, falling to the floor. "Hey, what's the big idea, Naruto?" he demanded.

Naruto just smiled. "You're brother summons crows, right?" he asked.

Sasuke gave him a strange look. "Yeah. Why?"

Tilting his head to the side, he gave a thinking look. "Why not ask him to put you on the contract? You're always training so hard, but those crows could help you become much stronger."

Turning and sitting across from Naruto, Sasuke considered his words. "You think I could be strong, just like Itachi, cause I'm his brother."

Naruto laughed. "Not at all. Itachi is in a league far above you or I," he said, disheartening Sasuke. "But, that isn't a bad thing. It gives you a goal. Sure, he uses the crows. But if you had them too, you'd be one step closer to surpassing him."

Sasuke smiled. "What about you? What's your summon that you keep bragging about?"

"Mine. Well, my first contract is for toads."

"What do you mean your first?"

"Let's just say, I have no intention of stopping at one."

* * *

 _ **Sasuke**_ looked across the training field at his brother as he finished his own set of exercises. "Itachi, would you help me with my shuriken training, too?" he asked, running up to his brother.

Itachi sighed, poking his younger brother in the forehead. "Not this time, Sasuke." He walked past Sasuke, heading inside.

"They keep comparing me to you," Sasuke said, stopping his brother. "People at school keep comparing my strength to yours, and so does dad, all because you're my brother and had your Sharingan so early. If you won't train me, would you at least give me the crow summons?"

Itachi gave a small chuckle. "And why would you want that?"

"Because, I can use them to show everyone that I can surpass even you, big brother."

"Is that so?" He pulled a small scroll from his sleeve. "If you truly think you can become stronger than me with them, then come get them, little brother."

* * *

 _ **Naruto**_ slipped into Sasuke's hospital room, sneaking in despite no visitors being allowed at the time. He saw his classmate sitting in the corner of the room, grabbing onto his head with both hands while his knees were pulled under his chin.

He walked closer, sitting next to Sasuke and remaining silent. Contemplating his own words, he lowered his head.

" _The child is suffering inside,"_ Dormin said.

" _Of course he is. His family is gone,"_ Naruto thought back.

 _"_ _Tis_ _not so simple. His sibling forced him to live it. Made him live the slaughter with what thou call, genjutsu."_

Naruto grit his teeth at hearing that such cruelty could happen, at the hands of his own brother no less. He thought a minute longer, feeling a little guilty for what he was about to say, but knowing it probably needed to be said.

"Now you know what it feels like," he said, getting Sasuke's attention. "You know what it's like to be alone."

Gritting his teeth in rage, Sasuke lunged at him, ready to hit him.

"Just like me," Naruto finished, stopping Sasuke. "It's why I act out like I do. And you all give me those looks, but all I want is attention, good or bad. Someone to know that I'm there. You're alone, just like me. But that rage, the hatred, every day it will try to consume you, make you lash out at an unsympathetic world."

Sasuke just fell into Naruto's chest, sobbing and crying in agony. "I watched them all die. I felt the blood on my hands. He made me watch everything he did."

Hesitantly, Naruto hugged Sasuke. "And you'll make him suffer for it. You'll have the revenge you need."

" _Thou art only fueling his hatred, Naruto."_

Naruto ignored Dormin. "But you need something to live for after, or nothing else will matter. So I'll help you. I'll help you live with the pain. And when the time comes, I'll help you kill your brother."

* * *

 _ **His**_ eyes slid open, finding himself resting in shallow water. Sitting up, he looked around what appeared to be a flooded basement. "Where am I?" Naruto thought aloud.

"Thou may consider it a mindscape," Dormin said.

Naruto craned his neck to look behind him, seeing the figure. "A what now?"

"A mindscape. The range of thine imagination and thought, given shape in thy mind's eye."

"I really need to buy a dictionary," Naruto mumbled, hanging his head.

Dormin gave a low chuckle. "Tell us, are thou familiar with the beast known as Kyuubi?"

Scratching the back of his head, Naruto got his feet under himself as he stood up. "Yeah. It's one of the most important stories in the village, of course I know it."

Nodding, Dormin turned away, walking through the corridors with Naruto following him. "We told thee that our will would be a passenger, not unlike another." As they walked, pillars took form ahead of them, resembling a massive gate. "Thou shalt meet the one we spoke of."

Naruto's eyes widened as the shadow beyond the bars shifted, it's nine tails swaying as it moved closer.

" **So, you are the other creature inhabiting my jailer,"** the Kyuubi said.

"We, are Dormin."

" **The Sage was right then,"** Kyuubi said, laying his head down on his folded hands. " **You are real."** Opening his eye, he stared down at Naruto. " **Come closer, little boy."**

Naruto moved to take a step forward, stopped as Dormin laid a hand on his shoulder.

The Kyuubi chucked. " **Oh, how I would love to kill you, but this accursed seal keeps me locked away."**

"W-what's going on here?" Naruto asked. "Who is this? Why is he in my mind-thing?"

"This, is the Kyuubi. Lift thy shirt, Naruto." Dormin watched as Naruto did as he was told, revealing a seal on his stomach. "When your fourth Hokage defeated the Kyuubi in battle, he sealed it away, killing such a being was beyond him. He sealed it into thee, Naruto. You contain this creature."

Taking a moment to process what he was being told, Naruto stood in stunned silence. "What?" He placed a hand against the seal. "I have the Kyuubi...inside me? Is that why they always look at me like that?"

Dormin nodded. "We believe it was kept secret for a purpose, but from thee, no longer." He turned back to Kyuubi. "You know what we intend for your host."

" **I am aware. What of it?"**

"In short, we desire your aid."

* * *

 _ **Seven**_ years passed slowly as Naruto trained with his sword and various other exercises. Dormin constantly pressured to boy to learn more, tactics, different fighting and sword styles, about jutsu, and chakra, even prompting him to research more about summons if he ever hoped to achieve his goal. His learning about seals had eventually allowed him to stop carrying his sword on his back.

He continuously practiced with the Kyuubi's power as well, what little he was granted without complaint. It was always under a barrier created by Dormin, a barrier that only covered the signature of its energy. It was during these sessions that he had asked Kyuubi its name, much to the beast's shock, though it begrudgingly told him. Kurama, the real name of the Nine Tailed Fox.

Though it took more effort to convince him, Naruto eventually agreed to train with the toads as well. He made an effort to go to Mount Myōboku as little as possible, but even then he knew it was only a matter of time before he ran into Jiraiya.

Despite this, he continued learning, discovering different summons that seemed loyal to particular summoners or villages. And he couldn't deny that the toads had proved useful in teaching him techniques that allowed him to overcome his weaknesses.

Though, he could still see the disdain in the eyes of some. It was something he took pleasure in, knowing that some of it was no longer due to him once being the deadlast, but because of the pranks he still pulled.

He constantly worked with Sasuke as well, much to the ire of Kurama, each of them working to integrate their summons into their fighting. Both of them reached the top of their class, openly competing as often as they trained together, and he would constantly laugh when Sasuke was swarmed by the girls that fawned over him. Though they often kept to themselves, Naruto did his best to bridge the gap that formed between Sasuke and everyone else.

Despite Kiba's competitive nature and rivalry with Naruto, they had become friends. And with enough work, it was a friendship he was able to slowly pull Sasuke into.

But all of the training he had gone through allowed him to be on equal footing with Sasuke's skill and stand before his instructors and class to perform the jutsu necessary to graduate. He quickly formed three clones for his instructors, seeing the satisfied smile on one of them.

"Very good, Naruto," Iruka said. "You failed your first attempt at the exam, but it seems you've managed to finally increase your chakra control."

Naruto laughed. "Not yet I haven't," he said with a shrug and a grin. "I just bypassed the problem altogether. Figured I could burn that bridge when I got to it."

Iruka gave him a confused look before realizing what he meant. "Those are solid clones," he said, astounded. "Shadow Clones?"

"That's right," Naruto said. "While it's not the basic clone jutsu, the rules for the final exam don't exactly say I can't use a more advanced variant. Oh, but there was one other jutsu I was hoping to show you for some extra credit."

Each version of himself had a dark grin as they formed the hand signs. Chakra swirled around them. "Transform," they each called out.

Smoke filled the room, though the feminine giggling gave Sasuke a hint about what was going to happen. He held his hand up, covering Hinata's eyes. "Trust me," he said as she gave him an odd look.

As the smoke cleared, four women were left in Naruto's place, naked and posing erotically. Just enough smoke remained to cover the riskier parts of their bodies, though it didn't stop Iruka's nose from shooting blood as his face flushed.

Naruto returned to normal, his clones quickly dispersing as well. He leaned back on his heels, laughing at the reaction that was shared by a few of his classmates. "That was my Harem Technique. More effective than the classic Sexy Transformation, I see."

"Naruto! Can't you take this seriously?!" Iruka shouted at him.

Naruto stared at him for a moment, scratching at his ear. "Course I can. But why would I want to?" He moved his hand hand to the back of his head, scratching it. "Come on, teach. We're supposed to be the protectors of the village, and we will be. But right now, we're still children. So why not let us play the part. After all, it's not a role we'll have forever."


	4. Chapter 4

_**Sasuke**_ walked through the park by the academy, looking for his newly declared team mates. He passed Sakura, trying to ignore her as she came up behind him with a smile on her face.

"Hey, Sasuke. I know we're not on the same team, but I was wondering if you'd like to eat lunch together?" she asked.

Without acknowledging her request he turned back to her. "Have you seen Naruto?" he asked.

"Oh come on. What would you want with him? I mean, all he does is pick fights with you. You know why he's so annoying? Because he wasn't raised right. He doesn't have any parents to teach him right from wrong."

Sasuke glared at her, clenching his fists.

"He's so selfish because he's all alone," she finished.

Without warning, Sasuke smacked her, leaving her stunned. "Alone. Isolated. You couldn't possibly understand him. You have no idea what it's like to be alone. You are annoying." His hands shaking, he turned to leave. "I'll find him myself."

* * *

 _ **Standing**_ on the roof of the academy, Naruto leaned against one of the trees, resting beneath it's shade as he ate, drinking every so often from a thermos he kept strapped to his pants. He looked up into its branches, watching them sway in the breeze.

" _Thy ally is watching you,"_ Dormin said.

Naruto looked over at Hinata, seeing her quickly look away as her face turned red. " _What a weird girl,"_ he thought in return.

Dormin laughed in his head. " _She has eyes for thee."_

Naruto's face turned red slightly. " _Hey, What's that supposed to mean? Dormin? What do you mean by that? What the actual, literal, genuine fuck does that mean?"_ Not getting a response, he glanced back at Hinata as she pressed the tips of her fingers together. " _Shit. Why did you have you have to say that?"_

"N-Naruto," Hinata said, getting his attention. She looked down at her own food, which she had hardly touched. "I-I was thinking, maybe we should...eat lunch together more often. Since we're on the same team, I mean."

Thinking about Dormin's words, as he often did, Naruto hesitated. "Yeah. Sounds like a good idea."

* * *

 _ **On**_ the roof once more, Naruto hung from the tree by his legs as he read a small orange book. Sasuke sat beneath him, his eyes closed as he leaned against the tree. Hinata sat beneath the shade as well, though she sat across from Sasuke and looked up to Naruto.

"You're going to get us in trouble up here, Naruto," Sasuke said.

"Nonsense," Naruto said without looking away from his book. "Our sensei is late. Any good shinobi knows that when things don't go according to plan, you should move to more to more favorable ground. Besides, he's a Jounin." He began mimicking Iruka. "A shinobi elite. Masters of the ninja arts who will train you on your shinobi path." He laughed at his own impression "And I mean, look at this view. Is there anything more favorable?"

"What view. All you're looking at is that book."

"I was talking about the book. And this is the optimal lighting for reading it."

Sasuke laughed. "And hanging upside down is required for that optimal lighting?"

"Of course," Naruto replied, tilting his head and squinting at the page. "What does that word even mean? Oh... Oohhh... How would they even get into that position?" He paused, looking down at them. "Helps keep the blood flowing to my head when I read this stuff," he said with a grin.

Hinata gave him a questioning look, but as he went to explain it to her, Sasuke waved his hands.

"Not exactly the right company for that kind of joke," he said.

"Who said I was joking?"

As Naruto said this, Hinata's face turned a bright red, finally understanding what he meant. She froze in that position, looking down in embarrassment.

"Oops. I think I broke her. Hey, you alright down there?" Naruto asked, pulling himself up and dropping from the tree in one motion. He crouched in front of her, leaning in close and putting a hand on her forehead.

The small 'eep' sound she made in response made him laugh. "I-I-I'm alright, Naruto," she stammered out. ' _He's so close!'_ she thought to herself.

The door to the roof opening snapped her out of it as they all looked over. From the door walked a silver-haired man with his headband covering his left eye. Resting on the man's head was a small pug dressed with its own Konoha headband.

"There you three are," he said. "When I didn't find you in the classroom I almost considered you might have given up. But I was interested in hearing your reasons for not following orders and waiting for your sensei."

Without hesitation, Naruto stood up. "Well, I was actually just talking about that. I figured that, in any scenario encountered by a ninja, one must adapt. So if plans don't pan out and a contact doesn't show up, you should assume they died and move to a favorable position. You know, in case you're compromised." He held out a thumbs up. "I'm so sorry, Kakashi-sensei. I thought perhaps you might have gotten lost on the road of life and been hit by a runaway cart. With our leader dead, I had to lead this squad onward."

Kakashi gave him a deadpan look. "Hey, I'm not dead."

Naruto began to cry. "I miss him so much! It's like I can still hear his voice. I can feel his presence here, with us now, entrusting us to carry on our ninja ways in his honor."

"It's so hard to believe that he's really gone," Sasuke said, catching on quickly as he hugged Naruto close and they both cried. "Why did it have to be him? It wasn't his time."

"Not you too," Kakashi said, reaching forward, trying to gain some grip on the situation that had so quickly turned on him.

"He was so young!" Naruto cried out. "So young, and so late. I just wish he could have been on time. Maybe he would still be with us."

"Alright, alright. I get it. Would you knock it off?"

"Do you hear that Naruto?" Sasuke asked. "He wants us to stop. I can hear his voice from beyond telling us not to weep for him, that it's his fault, not ours."

"I can hear it too. It's so sad!"

Kakashi sighed, grabbing the pug from his head and setting him down. "Pakkun, help me out here?"

Pakkun laughed, heading over to the two. Much to Kakashi's surprise, the pug joined in. "He was the best summoner I ever had! I don't know how I'll ever replace him."

"Pakkun, not you too." Kakashi slumped down to his knees in defeat as the crying stopped.

Naruto, wiping away the tears, picked Pakkun up and bowed his head to him. "I, Naruto Uzumaki, will take on the roll of your summoner in Kakashi's honor," he said, though any hint of sadness was gone now.

The pug grinned, looking back at Kakashi. "I like these ones, Kakashi."

"I was beaten so easily," Kakashi mumbled. "Even my most loyal ninken turned on me."

"Don't be too sad, sensei. I've been at this a long time," Naruto said.

Kakashi looked up at him, but, with the situation having returned to sanity, focussed on the book in Naruto's hand. "I think all can be forgiven, as I see you too are a conasuir of true art," he said, pulling out his own copy of the orange book.

Naruto held up his copy. "You mean this? Eh. It's pure smut." He could see Kakashi's eye go wide as if he had been hit in the gut. "I mean, it's perfect for a pervert though."

"You're so cruel to your sensei." Snapping himself out of it, Kakashi stood up and looked down at Naruto. "By the way, how did you know my name?"

Naruto shrugged. "You're Kakashi Hatake, one of the youngest people to ever join ANBU, right up there with Itachi Uchiha. You have a reputation."

As Kakashi leaned against the railing not far from them, Pakkun jumped back on top of his head. "You know you can head back now, right, Pakkun?"

"And miss whatever shenanigans these two pull? I'm fine right where I am," Pakkun said.

"You know, if you put me on your contract, I can summon you whenever I pull shenanigans on Kakashi," Naruto said.

"I might take you up on that."

Kakashi sighed. "Well, late as I may or may not be, I am your new sensei, Kakashi Hatake, as you clearly already know. Why don't you all introduce yourselves as well, give me a better idea of my new students."

Naruto smirked. "Well, as I already said, my name is Naruto Uzumaki. I like seals and ramen. I dislike the time it takes to cook ramen. Let's see. My hobbies...well, let's just say I'm a collector. And my dream for the future, it's not a dream. I will achieve it. I will become the greatest summoner this world has ever seen, and in doing so, I will find peace in a bright and beautiful valley to call my home."

"Quite the lofty goal you have there," Kakashi said. "How about you?"

"Me?" Hinata asked. "I-I'm Hinata Hyuga. What do I l-like?" She turned a deeper red at the thought. She patted the sides of her face, trying to stay focussed. "My dislikes… I dislike when someone is put down for things beyond their control. I d-don't really have any hobbies. I mean, that is to say." She glanced over at Naruto to see him watching her. "I like meditating. My dream for the future." She thought about her dream, blushing again. "My dream is to bridge the gap in my clan," she blurted out.

Naruto gave a small smile. As she looked up at him he gave a quick thumbs up.

"And how about you?" Kakashi said, pointing at Sasuke.

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I like my friend. Friends," he corrected as Naruto sent him a stern look. "I dislike a lot of things. My hobbies are training and…" He sighed. "And Bonsai," he said reluctantly, revealing one of the methods of relaxation Naruto had told him to learn. "My dream for the future is also an ambition. I will avenge my clan and destroy my brother, Itachi Uchiha. And afterwards, I will restore my clan and find my own peace."

Kakashi nodded. "Well, it seems this team is ready for its final test tomorrow. Meet me on training ground three tomorrow morning at six in the morning. This test will weed out the weak and have them sent back to the academy. Oh, and I wouldn't eat if I were you, or you might throw up."

As Kakashi left, Naruto glanced at Sasuke. "I've got a twenty in my pocket that says he's an hour late tomorrow."

"There's no way. Mine says at least two hours," Sasuke replied.

"I'll take on that action."

Watching them, and looking where Kakashi had been standing, Hinata tapped Naruto on the shoulder. It took her a moment to form the words she wanted to say. "I think he'll be there before an hour," she said. She turned away as he stared at her.

He suddenly cracked a grin. "You're on."


	5. Chapter 5

_**Naruto**_ grumbled as he walked onto the training field, wiping sleep from his eyes as he stretched. He hated being up so early, but he looked ahead to see Hinata and Sasuke waiting for him, each of them getting there early to secure their bet.

As he approached, his spirits brightened to see that Kakashi was nowhere to be found and he had only gotten there with a few minutes to spare. Finally standing next to the two he looked around.

"G-good morning, Naruto," Hinata said.

He gave a small wave. "Morning," he said, drinking from his thermos. His eyes suddenly became brighter. "Now, it is a good morning."

"It's almost six," Sasuke said. "We better get comfortable. We're gonna be waiting at least a couple hours."

Naruto snorted. "We'll see about that," he said, pulling out a stopwatch.

"What would you need a stopwatch for?" Kakashi asked, suddenly appearing at Naruto's side.

"Fuck you, that's why," Naruto growled out. He put away his watch and pulled out his wallet, grumbling as he and Sasuke both handed Hinata their money. Sipping from his thermos again, he glared at Kakashi.

"My, that's a rough greeting. You wouldn't have lost that money because of me, would you?"

"As a matter of fact, yeah, I did. What's this test supposed to be? Why am I up so early?"

Kakashi gave him an odd look. "Would that be coffee in you have there? You don't really seem the type to need it."

Naruto's eyes narrowed. "Wouldn't you like to know."

Sasuke folded his arms, leaning under a tree. "And why are we out here so early? What's this test you were talking about?"

Kakashi pulled out a pair of bells, setting a clock on a stump. "Well, you see, you must take one of these bells from me before noon. You'll notice there are only two. If you don't grab a bell, you'll be tied to a stump while everyone else eats lunch. And, if you fail, you will be sent back to the academy."

Naruto laughed. "That's it? Steal a bell from you?" He started to stretch. "Any rules? Limitations? I'm just wondering if I should be holding back at all."

"Just come at me with the intent to kill if you want any hope of passing," Kakashi said with a smile.

"I see," Naruto said. "Hinata, what would you say your strong suits are? I should probably get a feel for what you can do."

She gave a small nod. "I have h-high chakra control, and taijutsu training from my clan."

"I see. Well, I think it would be best to just show you what Sasuke and I specialize in. Stand back and get ready. I don't know much about the Hyuga clan's fighting form, so if you see an opening, go for it in whatever way you think best."

Her face turned red at the trust he seemed to be putting in her, giving another nod.

"You may begin," Kakashi said. He watched and none of them moved, Hinata stepping back and getting into a fighting stance while Naruto and Sasuke stood there, seeming relaxed.

"Thinking back, you said Intent to kill, right?" Naruto asked, patting Sasuke on the shoulder. "Is that what you heard, Sasuke? It sounds to me like he wants us to go all out."

"That's what I heard, Naruto," Sasuke said. He gave a small gesture with his hand, Naruto nodding his agreement as they both got into fighting stances.

"You know," Kakashi said, "you should be using stealth to your advantage. A direct assault should never be a shinobi's first resort. I'll let that be the first lesson for my students."

Without responding, Naruto and Sasuke began forming hand signs, preparing their own jutsu. Kakashi's eye widened as they finished.

"Futon: Air Bullet," Naruto yelled out, creating a single shot of compressed air that fired at high velocity.

"Katon: Great Fireball Technique," Sasuke said, forming a fireball that merged with the air bullet.

The combined attack ripped apart the ground and left it scorched as it flew at Kakashi, forcing him to leap out of the way. His hair was singed as he landed, his eye readjusting to the light. Just as his vision cleared, he saw Hinata running at him, her palms held up to attack.

Hinata attempted a quick series of jabs and palm thrusts, narrowly missing as Kakashi dodged. He pulled his arm up just in time to block a kick at his head from Sasuke, leaving him open for her to jab his other arm.

Kakashi pushed Sasuke back, leaping to put distance between himself and them. "You three really are on another level than what I expected. Now I won't be able to read my Icha Icha."

Naruto suddenly appeared between his two teammates, rushing in at Kakashi with his arm cocked back to punch him. As he was kicked in the face, he dispersed in a cloud of smoke.

In that moment of blindness, he felt arms and legs wrap around his torso, restraining him. ' _He got behind me?'_ he yelled in his head. ' _A diversion?'_

"Grab the bells," Naruto shouted as he held Kakashi back.

Kakashi tried to move, to shake Naruto off, but he suddenly felt clones grab his legs. He tried to replace himself, but in the breath before he managed, he felt the tug at his side of the bells being pulled away from him.

Naruto let go, dropping to his feet and dispersing his clones. He walked around Kakashi, standing with Hinata and Sasuke. "Let me see those bells, Hinata," he said, holding a hand out to her. She gave them to him, watching as he tossed them back to Kakashi. "So, I figured out your little test. I told you, Kakashi. You have a reputation."

"And how much of that reputation do you know?" Kakashi asked, looking down at the bells back in his hand.

"I know we're the first team to have ever figured it out. Otherwise, I know as much as I know. No sense asking what a person doesn't know. So then, sensei. When do we start working as a real team."

Kakashi looked up, smiling. "You already are a real team. Meet me here tomorrow and we'll start our first mission."

* * *

 _ **Entering**_ his apartment, Naruto put his keys on the table and walked to the back. He stepped into his room, removing his shoes. "What did you think of the show, Dormin, Furball?"

He heard Kurama growl at the title. " _ **Why ask my name if you only call me that?"**_ the creature asked in his mind.

Naruto shrugged, a gesture that was communicated into his mind.

" _Thou performed well, Naruto,"_ Dormin said. " _Thy team worked well together under thy direction."_

"Sasuke and I have been working together for a while now. I'm just glad Hinata could hold her own on my minimal guidance. She seems competent enough."

He pushed his hand against the wall, an ornate, rectangular blue symbol appearing. Shadows surrounded his body, consuming him. As the darkness cleared away, he found himself in a laboratory with glowing glass tubes against one of the walls.

"I really must thank you, Dormin, for teaching me that teleportation magic. Combining it with summoning sceals is quite useful. If I could only make it faster, I would be able to use it like the Hiraishin."

' _Give it time.'_

"Yeah, I know." He looked at one of the bodies floating in the tanks. "As a scientist, I must always keep improving. Orochimaru has that right, and though his methods are detestable, his work must be improved upon too." He reached up, resting a hand on the tank.

" _Thou shall perfect it."_

"No, not perfect. Never perfect. I will never stop striving to do better, to be better than I was." His body shifted, shadows altering his form as horns grew from his head. "Anyways, back to my research. I think I'm close to figuring out the problems with the Edo Tensei." He turned to a desk, looking over formulas and notes. "Though, it is difficult to find test subjects without becoming just like Orochimaru and Hiruko, like the Master of the Valley."

* * *

 ** _"You're_** late on your shipment, Gato," a man said, standing before the tycoon at his desk, looking at the short man through his mask. "We had a contract, you were paid in advance. You are expected to deliver."

"Hey, these people are hiding their children, sending them away however they can. It's even harder finding the specific type of children you want. If I had known it was going to be like this, I would have charged more. Speaking of charging more-"

"You've been paid. You will not get more than we agreed upon."

"Then how about I just kill you and be done with it."

"If someone as pathetic as you thought you could get away with it, you already would have. You know what we are capable of. Get what we agreed upon, or you will find that we can make business quite difficult for you. My Queen will not be denied."


	6. Chapter 6

_**Hinata**_ walked at Naruto's side with Sasuke on his other flank. Kakashi and their client walked ahead of them. Her eyes scanned the woods around them, even if this was only a C-rank mission.

Mid stride, Naruto stopped. "Hey, wait," he said, stopping everyone. "Do you smell that?" He sniffed at the air. "That smell. A kind of smelly smell. The smelly smell that smells...smelly."

"You shouldn't talk about the client like that, Naruto," Sasuke said, his arms folded.

Their client, a bridge builder from Wave country, shook his sake bottle at them, about to say something.

"Not him," Naruto said. His eyes widened and his ears perked up. "Them."

A chain wrapped tight around Kakashi, two men in identical dress appearing at his sides. The only distinguishing feature was the single horn one had on his forehead protector while the other had two. A shuriken-chain connected their gauntlets.

"First one," the twins said in unison. They pulled their chain tight, the blades digging in as it ripped Kakashi apart. Pulling their chain taught between them, they quickly got behind Naruto. "Second one."

Sasuke leapt into the air, using a shuriken to trap their chain against a tree and a kunai to lock it in place. They pulled forward in an attempt to dislodge their chain even as Sasuke landed on their gauntlets.

Sweeping his leg, Naruto knocked the feet out from one of them while Sasuke kicked the other in the head. Their chains disconnected as the two attackers backflipped away. Landing upright, the two rushed around Naruto and Sasuke, aiming for Tazuna.

Naruto formed a clone, throwing it at one of the brothers even as Hinata stepped in front of Tazuna to protect him. His clone latched onto the single horned man's back, tackling him to the ground.

As the other lunged at Hinata, an arm caught him by the throat. She looked up to see Kakashi standing there, holding him.

"Substitution," the brother being held by Naruto said in surprise.

Kakashi turned to Naruto and Sasuke, looking down at the conscious twin. "Good work, team. You handled them well." He restrained them both, Naruto helping tie them to a nearby tree. He looked back at Tazuna. "Sorry I didn't step in sooner. I had to see what their target was and what they were after."

Tazuna grimaced. "What are you getting at?"

"Well, I had to see if their target was you, or us shinobi. But, we haven't heard anything about you being attacked by ninja. The job was protection from gangs, bandits, and the like while you finished your bridge. But with shinobi, this should be a mission of B-rank or higher. These two are Meizu and Gozu, the Demon Brothers. Known associates of Zabuza Momochi, which means this could easily be an A-rank. It appears there's a good reason for this, but being lied to in the request won't do. This is beyond the scope of our mission."

"You're talking about giving up, Kakashi?" Naruto said. "No, worse. You're talking about going back to boring D-rank chores." There was a pause as he shook his head. "No. Not yet. The mission continues."

Kakashi sighed. "We could continue to escort you to Wave Country, but if you don't tell us who your assailants are, and why they're after you, our mission may end the moment you get there."

Tazuna looked between them before hanging his head. "It appears I have no choice but to tell you. It is as you said. This may well be beyond the scope of your mission. The truth is, I am being targeted by a terrifying man. You should have at least heard his name before. A shipping tycoon by the name of Gato."

Naruto's eyes widened slightly. " _Dormin, isn't that-"_

" _Thou art correct."_

" _All the more reason to go."_

"I've heard the name before. The CEO of Gato Company. He's been in dozens of lawsuits and civilian criminal cases in nearly every country on the coast, and even some further inland. No one's ever been able to tie him to anything. He's one of the richest men in the world right now, and it's most likely because of that money that no one's been able to stop him."

Tazuna nodded. "On the surface he's an executive for a shipping company. But in truth, he's into drug trafficking and deals in contraband using gangs and shinobi. Moreover, he uses his money and power to take over businesses and small countries. Almost a year ago, he set his sights on Wave, using his wealth and violence to come in and, before anyone knew it, take over all of our maritime shipping and transportation. Control of the ocean for an island nation like ours means control of the business, government, people, everything. The only thing he fears, is the bridge that has been under construction for some time now, connecting Wave to the mainland."

"So you've become a hindrance to him," Hinata said. "So these are Gato's men."

"There's one thing I don't understand," Kakashi said. "Why lie to us about the mission if he is so dangerous?"

"Not enough money," Naruto said. "If a man like that takes control of a nation, I'm guessing he's barely leaving even the feudal lords enough money to get by."

Tazuna nodded once more. "Naturally, us ordinary people wouldn't have the money to afford high level mission requests. The fact of the matter is, if you leave when we get to Wave, I will, no doubt, be killed before I make it home."

"Then I guess we don't have much of a choice," Naruto said, stepping forward. "Looks like we're headed to Wave Country."

"Naruto, this isn't just some game," Kakashi said. "Next time they will send Jounin. You're not ready for something like this."

"And what exactly do you expect me to do then?"

"Go home. Do nothing. Wait for a mission more suited to your rank."

Naruto grit his teeth and clenched his fists as he rounded on Kakashi. "No. I will not turn my back on people who need me."

Hinata nodded. "I'll go too, Naruto." She looked down with the way he smiled at her. "They need our help."

Sasuke crossed his arms, stepping up beside Naruto. "I can hardly let my teammates go and get themselves killed, can I."

Looking at his team standing there, ready to take this risk, Kakashi scratched the back of his head. "You three aren't leaving me much choice either." He looked to Tazuna. "I guess we will continue to be your bodyguard, master bridge builder."

Although shocked that they so readily decided to help him, he nodded. "Thank you. All of you."

* * *

"How could you let this happen?" Gato demanded. "You told me you could deal with the bridge builder, Zabuza. I paid you a lot of money!"

Zabuza glared at the man, pulling his sword off his shoulder and leveling it at Gato with a single hand. "Stop your damn whining. Next time, I will kill him with this, my Kubikiribocho"

The masked man next to Gato placed a hand on the sword, seeming to gently lower it despite Zabuza's shock that his blade could be forced down in such a way. "I'd appreciate it if you not kill him until he has finished his business with me," the man said.

"And who are you supposed to be?" Zabuza asked, narrowing his eyes at the man.

"An interested third party. There are two I would like you to not kill. Bring them to me, alive, and there will be a hefty bonus for you."

Zabuza pulled his sword back over his shoulder. "Keep someone alive? What kind of bonus?"


	7. Chapter 7

**[A/N] So, in a few chapters I'm going to introduce Naruto's summons. I intend for him gaining quite a few. So leave a review and tell me what colossus you'd like to see first, and any summoning animals you would recommend or like to see.**

 **Also, to anyone waiting on I Chose Rapture and TPOYB chapters, I am working on them and want to have them out soon. But I already had the next chapter of ICR done a long time ago and rewriting and editing takes me far longer than just writing new chapters hahaha. Not quite sure why, but I do want to put out content that matches my current style and skill and continually improve for all of you.**

 **I do want you all to enjoy my writing as I continue to put out, what I hope is, a unique series of stories** **.**

* * *

 _ **Naruto**_ sat at the front of the boat, looking forward. He watched the bridge pass by as they rode in silence. The boatman had even commented that he was taking a lot of risk, rowing instead of running the motor to not alert anyone.

He closed his eyes, entering his mindscape and sitting in front of the cage. "So, things really have gone to shit in this country. Do you really think the Queen could be responsible for all this?"

"Unlikely though it may be that her existence persists, we see similarities in their actions," Dormin said.

"Yeah, the whole missing children thing." He brought his hands together behind his head as he laid back. "If that's true, then there's probably another Master of the Valley under construction. Why children though?"

" **Children's magical energy develops like their brains,"** Kurama said. " **It's more raw and concentrated in the younger years as it becomes more focussed. It can dissipate if not trained, like atrophied muscles."** He paused to look at Naruto and Dormin. " **What? The Sage spoke of such things as the world transitioned from what week magic remained to chakra."**

Dormin nodded. "Adults can rebuild those lost magical energies, though, through such training it becomes difficult to harvest."

Naruto mulled over their words. "Kurama, that summoning contract Madara Uchiha bound you to, its connection to you was severed when you were sealed into Mito Uzumaki, right? That's why the masked man tried to rebind you to the same contract?"

Kurama growled at the mention of the two men who tried to control him. " **He was not the real Madara, but had clearly been given the same contract by him. Why?"**

"I've done a lot of research on summoning contracts, but I have to ask. Could a contract like that be replicated?"

Before Naruto got his answer, he was pulled back to consciousness with Kakashi shaking his shoulder.

"Naruto, we're here," Kakashi said.

He looked around, seeing the dock their client and the rest of his team now stood on. He stepped out of the boat, looking back as it pushed away from the docks.

"This is as far as I go, Tazuna," the man said.

"I understand," Tazuna replied with a nod. "Thank you for bringing us this far."

The boat disappeared back into the mist as they turned to head towards Tazuna's home. Naruto's eyes glanced back and forth over the treelines. He felt his mind trying wander until he sniffed the air. Without warning, he threw a kunai through a bush, hearing it bury itself in a tree.

"Rabbits and ice. Or is that iron?" he said, pushing his way through the plants to find a snow rabbit cowering in fear, the kunai embedded inches above its head.

Kakashi watched as Naruto pulled the blade free, thinking to himself. ' _It's fur wouldn't be white this time of year unless it was constantly stored inside. It's been bread for substitution jutsu. Which means…'_

Naruto stiffened. "They're already here," he said to himself, thinking the same as Kakashi.

"Everyone, get down!" Kakashi yelled.

Naruto dove to the ground as Sasuke pushed their client down in time to avoid the massive sword that went flying above their heads. The sword itself planted itself firmly halfway through a tree before a man landed on the handle.

Hinata was the first to look up at the man standing there, looking down on them. She quickly got her feet under her, taking a defensive stance in front of Tazuna.

Kakashi stepped in front the group, looking up at the man. "Well, well. You must be Kiri's missing-nin, Zabuza Momochi."

"Kakashi of the Sharingan," Zabuza said. "My, this is a treat. Sorry, but I'm going to have to take the old man." His eyes glanced over the rest of the team.

"I can't handle this as I am, so I'll have to use this." Kakashi pulled up his headband, revealing his hidden eye.

"Well now. I never thought I'd see the rumored Sharingan so soon. This is an honor. When I was in the Hidden Mist ANBU, the bingo book had information about the Sharingan's ability to copy techniques, and about the man who had copied over one thousand jutsu."

"Get in Manji formation. Protect Tazuna. That's the teamwork in this situation," Kakashi said to his students.

Naruto backed up, but suddenly put his arms down. "Hang on a second." He pointed to the sword Zabuza stood on. "Would that be the Kubikiribocho? One of the seven swords of Kirigakure?"

Zabuza paused a moment. "That's a good eye you have there, kid."

"Always wanted to get a good look at that sword."

"Well, you're about to get a real close look. Enough talking." Zabuza pulled his sword free, landing on a nearby lake. Mist began to build up around him.

"He's gathering quite a bit of Chakra," Kakashi said.

"Ninja Art, Hidden Mist Jutsu," Zabuza said, the area quickly becoming enshrouded in mist.

"He'll probably come to kill me first. Keep your guard up. He's a master of the silent killing technique. As the name suggests, it's a technique that's implemented in a moment of pure silence."

The mist steadily became thicker until Kakashi was separated from them, leaving a feeling of vulnerability in them. A feeling that grew as Zabuza's voice echoed out through the fog.

"Eight spots. The larynx, the spine, the lungs, the liver, the jugular, the subclavian veins, the kidneys, and the heart. Now then. Which vulnerable part should I target first."

The was a palpable silence until Kakashi placed his hands together, waves of chakra and killing intent dispersing the mist. Sasuke froze in the wake of it.

' _What an intense lust for blood,"_ he thought. He could feel that one breath or movement would lead to his end.

"Sasuke, don't worry," Kakashi said. "I won't allow my team to be killed."

"Are you so sure?" Zabuza asked, appearing between Tazuna and rest of the team. "It's over."

Kakashi spun, seeing Zabuza's sword already mid swing. He moved to stop the sword, realizing that he wouldn't reach them in time.

Metal clashed against metal, stopping both Kakashi and Zabuza.

"You were right. This is quite a close up look," Naruto said with a grin, holding back the Kubikiribocho with his own sword. "Excellent craftsmanship. The smell of pure iron from its self caring abilities. I will admit to being quite impressed."

Zabuza pushed Naruto back, leaping away as Hinata took the opportunity to jab at his rib. Her hand came away wet as water poured from his chest.

"A Water Clone?" Kakashi asked himself. "Then where-"

"Behind you," Naruto shouted.

Kakashi turned to see Zabuza's sword swinging around at him, cleaving him in half at the waist. As his top half went flying, the blood cleared and his body dispersed into water.

' _Water Clone? How could he possibly have copied me in this mist?'_ As his clone dispersed, Zabuza felt the kunai placed against his throat from behind.

"It's over," Kakashi said.

Zabuza started to laugh. "Did you say it's over? You don't understand, do you? You won't be able to beat me just by making like a monkey. But I must say, you're good. You had already copied me by the time you dispelled the mist. You succeeded in distracting me. But, I'm not a fool." The sentence was finished as he appeared behind Kakashi, the other bursting into a puddle of water.

"That one was fake too?" Naruto said.

Zabuza spun his blade around, aiming to cut the real Kakashi in half. His arms stopped as his sword was forced into the ground, Sasuke landing on the side of it and kicking down. Without hesitation, he let go of the sword and kicked Sasuke away.

Naruto rushed in, stabbing his sword down at Zabuza. As the swordsman backed up and he landed on on the Kubikiribocho, he kicked off to press his attack.

Every strike Naruto tried to land missed as Zabuza leaned back or sidestepped at every turn. He reached forward, grabbing Naruto's arm and slamming a knee into his stomach. As the boy was sent flying, Zabuza's eyes widened, seeing Kakashi running at him. He quickly spun, his leg catching Kakashi in the chest.

Kakashi used the momentum to flip into the water, going under for a moment. As he resurfaced, he looked around. "What's with this water? It's so heavy."

Zabuza landed on the water behind him, forming a series of hand signs. "Because it's my Water Prison Technique."

The water rose up, forming a bubble around Kakashi, trapping him as Zabuza held a hand inside. ' _My escape into the water was a huge mistake,'_ he thought to himself.

"Things will be easier if you're unable to act," Zabuza said. "I'll settle things with you once I've captured those two and kill the bridge builder." He formed a single hand sign, a water clone rising up in front of him.

' _Capture? What is he talking about?'_

He didn't receive an answer as the clone walked closer to the team. "You act so grown wearing those headbands like ninja. But a real shinobi is one that's hovered between life and death time and time again. In other words, only those worth being listed in my Bingo Book are worthy of being called shinobi."

"You three, run. Take Tazuna and get away from here," Kakashi yelled. "With me trapped in this Water Prison, he can't move from here, and his water clone shouldn't be able to go far from his real body. Just run. You don't stand a chance against this guy."

Sasuke looked between his teammates and Kakashi. ' _Just run away? The moment you got captured, it no longer mattered. Without you, sooner or later, we'd all be destroyed. Our only option is to rescue you.'_

Naruto sighed, walking in front of Sasuke. He stabbed his sword into the ground as he unzipped his jacket. "I already told you, Kakashi, I won't abandon people who need me." He shrugged the jacket off, showing off sealing arays up and down his arms. "I also told you I'm a collector, and I'm keen on adding that sword to my collection. Hey, no-brow, listen up. Add this to your bingo book. I am the one who will become the greatest summoner in the world. I am Naruto Uzumaki."

Zabuza laughed. "That look you're giving me. I'd almost say you might be a true shinobi."

He pulled a collapsible fuma shuriken from his bag, tossing it to Sasuke. "Our top priority is getting Kakashi out so we can keep the client safe. Hinata, from what I know about your clan, the Byakugan gives you a near perfect field of vision. Use that to keep an eye out for any more clones. I'll help you keep him safe," Naruto said, creating a trio of clones that moved back around Tazuna.

Hinata nodded, veins bulging around her eyes as she activated her Byakugan. ' _I won't let you down, Naruto.'_

Sasuke tested the wait of the shuriken, looking over at Naruto. "This is your plan? Really?"

"I've been waiting two years to try this out," Naruto said, rubbing his hands together. "I want to piss him off. Think we can do that?"

"Oh? I think that can be done," Sasuke said with a smirk. He unfolded the shuriken, locking it into place. "You ready?"

"Didn't I tell you? I've been waiting for this."

Sasuke ran forward, throwing the weapon at incredible speeds. Zabuza's clone prepared to defend itself, caught off guard as the shuriken curved around him, aiming for the real swordsman.

' _Aiming for my real body?'_ Zabuza thought. ' _Good effort, but doesn't matter.'_ He snatched the projectile from the air, his eyes widening as he noticed the second one flying at him in the shadow of the first.

At the last second, Zabuza pulled his legs up over it's flight path while maintaining his Water Prison. He looked back as it burst into smoke, revealing Naruto with his own shuriken. He sent it flying, aiming to cut off Zabuza's arm as he fell into the water.

Zabuza pulled away, cancelling his Water Prison to escape the attack. His clone reacted quickly, kicking off to the side to avoid it. He turned, spinning the shuriken in his hand to throw at Naruto. He felt the blade stop, looking to see Kakashi standing on the water himself, blocking it with the metal guard on his hand.

"You did well, all of you," Kakashi said. "Naruto, your strategy was outstanding."

Hinata watched on in surprise. ' _Despite Naruto always challenging Sasuke during the academy, they both work so well together,'_ she thought to herself.

"Hinata," one of Naruto's clones said, getting her attention. "There's still the clone to worry about. Don't lose focus. Shadow Clones can't take much of a hit, so we're counting on you."

She blushed but gave a quick nod.

"So, I got distracted and broke my water prison," Zabuza said.

"No. That's not it," Kakashi cut him off. "They forced you to break it. I'll tell you now, the same jutsu won't work on my twice." He met Zabuza's glare with one of his own. "So, what will you do?"

Zabuza collapsed the shuriken, pressing down on Kakashi with each blade. As Kakashi pushed back, the weapon was thrown from his hand. Both leapt back, staring each other down. He began forming a quick series of hand signs, feeling shocked as he watched his opponent copy each one in the same instant.

Hinata watched on only to have her attention grabbed by the Water Clone forming the exact same signs.

"I think it worked," Naruto said, replacing himself with one of the clones. "We pissed him off. Stand back, both of you," he said to Sasuke and Hinata. Both of them got behind him as he watched the clone. "Water Clones can still form jutsu if the creator forms the hand signs for them." ' _The real question becomes; Is he going to exhaust himself to target both us and Kakashi? Or take Kakashi's hit to take out Tazuna?'_

He received his answer as the water swelled in three places, two of the Water Dragons coiling around Kakashi and the real Zabuza, while the third readied behind the clone.

"Here it comes," Sasuke said.

The dragon charged them, it's maw wide open. Naruto stepped forward, thrusting his palm out. Seals on his palms stretched into the air, taking the impact of the dragon head on. He was pushed back from the force, his feet digging into the dirt.

As the air cleared, Zabuza wasn't the only one breathing heavy. Naruto lowered his hand, the seal shrinking on his palm. "Well, that hurt," he said. He looked up at the clone, his eyes changing from blue to a fiery orange in an ocean of black. The seal began to glow as he raised his hand back up. "But, it was a success. Which means, Zabuza, that I've won. And your sword is mine."


	8. Chapter 8

**[A/N] IMPORTANT (if you haven't played ICO or Last Guardian) So, a friend recommended I do this for people who haven't played Ico or Last Guardian, like her. And it's stupid that I didn't think to do it sooner. I'm going to lay out the only real important information from those games in my story right here in the A/N just in case I fail to implement it well enough.**

 **Also, to avoid any confusion, I'll also be adding this information in the A/N from chapter 1. If you have played those two games, skip to the line break. Otherwise-**

 **The Queen - The main antagonist of Ico. She was cloaked in shadow and used shadow creatures similar to those in in Shadow of the Colossus. She tried to take over the body of her daughter to avoid death. In the end, the player kills her with the Queen's Sword, much like the one from SOC gained from the time trials, and her castle sinks into the ocean.**

 **The Master of the Valley - The main "antagonist" of Last Guardian. I use quote marks because the Master is a spherical construct with no obvious motivations other than to maintain its power. It uses signals to control suits of armor and giant flying creatures called Trico to capture children. The children become covered in strange markings consumed by the Master. The suits of armor receive the signals through blue horns on the helmets, similar to the horns of the Trico.**

 **The Nest - The setting of Last Guardian. Massive ruins in a crater/valley surrounded by sheer cliffs. The only way in or out is flight.**

 **And that's pretty much it. Should be anyways.**

 **Hope you all enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

 _ **Zabuza's**_ breathing was heavy as he pressed his Kubikiribocho against Kakashi's hand guards. He could feel the walls closing in on him, how the fight hadn't gone as predicted.

"Not only did they make you break your water prison, they also handled your second dragon," Kakashi said, pushing the sword back. Both leapt away, putting distance between them.

There was a massive crash, drawing their attention as a Water Dragon swallowed up Zabuza's clone. As the dragon dispersed, Zabuza turned his attention to Kakashi once more. Kakashi mirrored each movement he made.

' _This guy…'_ Zabuza thought to himself. He began running in a circle to his right, stopping as Kakashi had run with him, simply trading places. He raised a hand up to use the Hidden Mist Jutsu, his eyes going wide at the site of Kakashi perfectly mimicking him without any delay between them. ' _This guy… My movements… He's perfectly-'_

"Reading them," Kakashi finished.

' _W-what? Is he reading my mind? Damn him! He's-'_

"Giving me that barron evil eye...right?"

There was a pause as Zabuza formed a hand sign. "You're just copying… You're a pale imitation."

"You won't be able to beat me, you!" they both shouted in sync.

They flew through hand signs. "I'll shut that copycat monkey-mouth of yours permanently!" Zabuza yelled. He froze, his eyes widening once more as he saw a shadow of himself forming behind Kakashi. ' _What is this? Me? No. It this Genjutsu?'_

Kakashi left him behind, finishing the jutsu. "Suiton: Giant Water Vortex Technique!"

"What?" Zabuza watched Kakashi's Sharingan spin as water built up, shooting out as sweeping him away. ' _No way! I was just about to use that technique!'_

The water crushed trees and washed away the ground with ease. Zabuza failed to keep up, being washed away and slammed into a tree as the water slowly receded. He tried to recover and stand, screaming out as kunai stabbed each of his limbs.

"It's over," Kakashi said from the branch above Zabuza.

Zabuza looked up at the man. "Why? Can you see the future?"

"Yeah. You're going to die."

Without warning, needles flew into the side of Zabuza's neck, dropping him to the ground as blood shot from the wounds.

Kakashi looked over to see a new figure, one wearing an outfit he recognized as that of a Kirigakure Hunter-nin. He looked back to Zabuza, landing next to the body to check for a pulse.

"You were right. He died," the masked figure said.

Naruto moved closer to examine the body himself. "So, who would you be," he asked the newcomer.

"By the looks of that mask, I'd say he's a Hunter-nin from Kirigakure," Kakashi answered.

The boy nodded. "I want to thank you. I've been waiting for the chance to kill Zabuza for some time now." He disappeared, landing next to the body.

"Then I would say it's a job well done," Naruto said.

"Yes. The battle is done for now. I'll be taking the corpse for disposal."

"Yeah, that's all well and good, but you will not be leaving with this," he said, grabbing the sword on Zabuza's back.

The hunter pulled a set of senbon needles. "I'm afraid I will not be leaving without it. It's property of Kirigakure."

"What's the old saying? To the victor go the spoils?"

"Naruto, let it go," Kakashi said with a hand on Naruto's shoulder.

"I am a collector. Kakashi, you are in no position to stop me. Using your Sharingan has put you at the end of your rope. You, Hunter-nin, last I checked, your nation is currently consumed by civil war. That means, back up for one man, let alone a covert agent that might not be able to report all the time, is hardly a priority." Noticing the masked shinobi tensing up, he held up his hand to show off the seals running along his arm. "My collection. This sword will be added to it. Take the body. I don't care. But the sword stays, or you don't leave."

The threat hung in the air, his cold tone leaving no question to his intent. Hinata looked back and forth between Naruto and the Hunter-nin he stared down. She could feel her hair begin to stand on end.

The hunter relented, giving a small nod. "That sword will be reclaimed," he said. "For now, my mission is the disposal of his body."

Naruto released the straps holding the sword in place, leaving the body as he sealed away the sword. He watched the hunter lift the body and leave.

"I'm so sorry about all this," Tazuna said. "Well, you can all stay at my house."

Kakashi nodded as he replaced his headband over his sharingan. "Well, Naruto, it seems you were right." His eye closed as he collapsed.

Naruto looked down at their unconscious sensei. "Great. Who gets to carry him?"

Sasuke quickly raised his hand. "Not it," he said.

* * *

 ** _Naruto_ **sat next to Kakashi as he came around. "Good to see you're awake again. You gonna be alright, sensei?" he asked.

Kakashi forced himself to sit up. "Not really. It's going to be difficult just to move for about a week."

"You're sharingan is powerful, but perhaps not worth the cost."

"And how is everyone else holding up?'

"Tazuna passed out when we got here and the adrenaline wore off. I offered to watch you until you woke up while Sasuke and Hinata recuperated. Hinata is sleeping, and Sasuke is helping Tsunami with food. She's Tazuna's daughter."

"You didn't need rest?"

"Not really. My arm hurts, but I spent minimal energy during the fight. But, there's something I wanted to ask you about. Hunter-nin like that, their job is to eliminate all traces of a shinobi. They get rid of secrets that might reside in the body, such as medicines and chakra signatures. However, don't they usually destroy the body immediately and on the spot?"

"Actually, that's a valid point. And with those weapons he used, it's likely he was put in a state of near-death to fool us. Which means, Zabuza is probably still alive."

Naruto nodded. "I was afraid of that. But when I thought about it, it made sense. Senbon needles are such a precise weapon, but one with a low ability to kill."

"But, it will take him a while to recover from such a state. Probably the same amount of time as me. So we have time to relax. Now it's my turn to ask you a question. The way you and Sasuke work together, at first I thought you were both good at communicating your intentions and that Sasuke was able to pick up on your plan easily, but then I remembered your final exam. It was the same then."

"I guess this was going to come up eventually," Naruto said with a sigh. "I should probably lay most of my cards on the table since you're my sensei. The truth of it is, Sasuke and I have been training together for years, despite the way we fought during the academy. I was there for him after his clan was slaughtered. Since then, we've been close friends."

"I see. This allowed you to both familiarize yourselves with how the other fought. And you've grown close because of it. Pairing you with with someone else would have been like breaking up this generation's Ino-Shika-Cho."

"Yes. The Hokage was aware of this, and it's why our team came out the way it did. He was going to put Sakura on our team to balance things out given her focus on academics, chakra control, and tactical planning over Ninjutsu. But her nature when around Sasuke and myself was too contradictory, a distraction. Not to mention Sasuke's strategic prowess and my own for tactics." He leaned back, leaving his legs crossed as he laid down. "I was a little...wary of Hinata at first. I was telling the truth during that test. I know next to nothing about her fighting style, or that of her clan. Not for lack of trying, but her being the only Hyuga in our class along with her timid nature made it difficult to gauge what I'm dealing with. But her own ability with chakra control and focus, and her ability to analyse a situation for an opening, it made her effective on what little direction I could give. She's a valuable asset for people like me and Sasuke who already work so well together."

Silence rested between them for a moment before Naruto sat back up. "Guess he was telling the truth though. He'll be coming to reclaim the sword next time."

"Right. I had almost forgot about that. You really wanted that sword. It almost seemed like-"

"Like an obsession. So I've been told. Do you know about what happened to me seven years ago? I'm guessing you're one of the few outside the Konoha council that do."

"As your teacher, I was told that you tried to use a summoning, and summoned two instead. You refused to talk about the second one."

"I already had a desire for more after that. A hunger to gather whatever I could. Eventually I signed another contract, and the fire grew. I wanted to collect more, and that want continued to grow with every addition to my collection. Weapons, including my own sword, summonings, and even jutsu. Though, I take a great deal of pride in how my methods differ from... others, including you. That's part of why I developed this." Naruto showed off the seal on his palm. "It only works against water though. Anything else is either too risky or doesn't work. It's how I turned the Water Dragon back on Zabuza."

"I see. So that's how you stopped it. Good. We'll need the edge when they attack again. Get ready, Naruto. Your team is going to be training hard for the next week."

"I figured as much. I almost used a summoning, this time around, Kakashi. I won't let things get as bad next time, so you have my promise that I will use one when the threat shows up again."

"One of the toads? Or something else?"

"Honestly? I'll probably flip a coin. But, I get the feeling I know what I'll need to use. For now, I'm gonna need another Water Dragon, if you can spare one."

* * *

 _ **"Please**_ don't pull them out so roughly, or you really will die," Haku said as he watched Zabuza pull the senbon from his neck.

Zabuza finished pulling them out, looking at the ground. "I can't believe you let that brat take Kubikiribocho."

Haku hung his head. "I didn't have much choice. I was in no position to challenge them. And if I hadn't rescued you, you would certainly be dead."

Zabuza growled. "You didn't have to aim for the secret spot on my neck."

"Well, I didn't want to mess up your body. But, you'll be numb for about a week."

He shrugged. "My pride is more hurt than my neck. I can't believe I let those children outsmart me and take my sword. Especially the blonde one. Next time, I'll kill him myself."

"You will do no such thing," a man said, stepping into the clearing. Haku went on guard at his appearance and the cold eyes peering through the mask. "I would have understood killing them before and not taking the money, but after watching that fight, you will not kill that one."

"If you want him so bad you better start talking. Why do you want him so bad?" Zabuza asked with a glare.

"That is none of your concern. You will bring him to me. Take the payment offered or not, but if you fail, I will personally ensure your death and retrieve the boy myself. Gato should have the shipment ready by the week's end. I will have the boy on that ship by then."

"You do realize I won't be able to move before then, right?"

"That sounds like a personal problem. One my queen will have no sympathy for."


	9. Chapter 9

_**Kakashi**_ sat across from his team as they ate, Tazuna and Tsunami on either side of him. Naruto ate quickly, placing his bowl back down.

"So we'll be doing tree walking to enhance our chakra control," Sasuke said.

"Yes. It'll help you to keep from exhausting yourself when Zabuza returns. But, it should come a little easier to you, Naruto. You're skill with sealing techniques will counterbalance the lack of control you displayed in the academy."

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "I wouldn't be so sure. I've been doing small exercises to balance out my chakra control for years."

"Be that as it may, your massive reserves of chakra don't allow for half measures. Tree and water walking will take you time, but should allow you to advance in leaps and bound compared to other techniques. Learning to focus just the right amount of chakra into one part of your body will let you master how powerful you make your other techniques."

"Well, let's get to it then teach."

* * *

" _ **Why**_ _are we here, Dormin?"_ Naruto asked in his mind as he pushed a boulder aside. " _I love coming to these lands any chance I get, but why this forest in particular?"_ He continued along the path, basking in the cool air of the forest. Light tinted by the leaves shone down on him.

" _We sense life in this forest,"_ Dormin replied. " _Potential for thy collection."_

Naruto accepted the answer as he stepped into a clearing against a cliffside. The distant sound of waterfalls echoed through the forest as he stared into a dark cave. He stepped forward, feeling hot breath on his face.

Red eyes peered out at him. "So, a human has finally found us. I knew it would happen eventually. You seek to use our power for war, like other shinobi before you. Leave this place. We will not be weapons."

Naruto sat on the ground, crossing his legs. "Your clan is one of the ones used during the era of warring shinobi clans. I know what that feels like, that expectation of being a weapon. A trump card."

The creature hummed. "Jinchuriki. Perhaps you do know what it means to be weapon."

"I've never been used like that. But I know the day will come, as it comes to all like me. To all shinobi. I wouldn't lie and say I'm not going to fight, or that you wouldn't be summoned to help me. But, maybe, we could protect each other."

* * *

 ** _Naruto_ **awoke from the memory, feeling the soft ground against his back. His body ached as he looked up to the kunai embedded high in a tree. Sasuke's rested at the top of the tree, his friend having mastered it faster under his advice and Hinata's example. His own massive reserves felt drained from the night of training.

He looked up, seeing a girl looking down at him. Inhaling deeply, he sat up. "Who are you?" he asked with a bright smile. "And, what are you doing out here?"

She smiled at him. "I'm actually gathering medicinal herbs."

"Herbs? So, for like healing injuries, right."

"That's right," she said with a nod.

"Then you must be taking care of someone," Naruto said, watching her every move. "Unless you're stocking up for the future."

Her eyes narrowed, if only slightly. "I am caring for someone. Someone...very important to me. But, what are you doing out here so early? You look like you've been training."

"I have been. You see, I'm a shinobi, and I've been working a lot harder than normal to get stronger."

"Why is that? You already look plenty strong to me."

"No. I have to get much stronger than I am now. I've got a goal I need to reach, people I want to help to reach their dreams, a legacy I have to take."

"I see. And, is that for your sake? Or the sake of someone else?"

Naruto folded his arms, thinking about it for a moment. "I guess you could say that it's for both. Perhaps we're the same in that regard."

"What do you mean by that?"

His head tilted to the side a bit. "You believe it to, don't you? That it's our relationships that make us strong. Without holding anyone close to our hearts, we can become hollow. The people we fight for make us strong."

"Yes. If you have something precious you want to protect, then you can truly become strong."

He let out a small sigh. "If you're as fast as I think you are, this is going to hurt. Tell me, What makes someone like Zabuza so precious to you?" He closed his eyes as Senbon dug into his skin and his world went black.

* * *

 ** _Sasuke_** felt dread settle in the pit of his stomach as he looked out at the night. His gaze drifted to the floor. He and Hinata had searched for Naruto when he didn't return, and argued with Kakashi when they were ordered to return to Tazuna's home.

Kakashi had been reluctant to give the order, but knew that they couldn't compromise their job and leave Tazuna's family unprotected when they had no idea where Naruto was. Seeing no way to calm Sasuke down, he had compromised and sent his Ninken pack to search and report back to them, agreeing to act once they knew more.

Guilt began to form in Sasuke as well as he thought back to Inari, the bridge builder's grandson. Looking back out, his fists clenched again, thinking about what the boy had said.

" _He's probably dead. That's what he gets for thinking he can go against Gato and win."_

 _Sasuke turned on him with a backhanded fist, slamming Inari to the floor. "I should rip your throat out, just to keep you from speaking such filth again." He grabbed him by the shirt, cocking back his fist to hit him again._

" _That's enough, Sasuke," Kakashi said as he grabbed Sasuke's wrist._

 _Sasuke ignored Kakashi. "You don't know anything. You're nothing but a cowardly brat who's content with burying his head in the sand." He pushed Inari back to the floor and pulled from Kakashi's grip. "If you can't go on living through your suffering, then killing you would be a mercy. That's the lesson Naruto taught me."_

 _With tears streaking down his face, Inari ran outside and disappeared in the night._

"T-they still haven't come back?" Hinata asked as she came up beside him.

Before Sasuke could respond, Kakashi stepped through the door with Pakun sitting on his head. "I know where he is. We should hurry."

* * *

 ** _He_** looked up at the two masked figures through the holes of his cage as they spoke to one another. One, the masked hunter-nin who had taken him. He glared at the other.

"You brought him in just in time," the man said.

" _Dormin, that's the Mask of Strength, isn't it,"_ Naruto asked in his head.

" _Thou art correct. He is in position of the Cloak of Force as well. Our enemy is the being of light."_

"So the Bitch of Light is still alive," Naruto blurted out.

The man looked down at him. "Watch your tongue, cursed one."

"You're clearly a shaman before a shinobi. You know who I am then."

"Dormin. We tried finding you after sensing your power so many years ago, but you were protected by secrecy."

"Not the first to hate me for something I contain, but no. Let me correct you. My name, is Naruto Uzumaki, the greatest summoner this world has ever seen."

"Soon, you will be nothing more than fuel for my Queen's return," the shaman said, turning and leaving. "Prepare to load the shipment."

Naruto smirked. "I'll kill him, and add his artifacts to my collection. But, what about you, hunter girl? You still never answered my question. What makes Zabuza so precious." He looked at the tags on the corners of his cage and the magic sigil on top.

She turned back to him. "Do you know what it's like to not be needed by anyone? To live day to day without a dream? The pain of it all. Zabuza gives me purpose. And fulfilling his dreams, that is my dream."

"So you've become a willing tool. And what happens when a tool loses its purpose, or breaks?"

"Then it dies doing what it was meant to do."

"Such a shame. Under other circumstances, I think we could have been friends. One man's trash is another man's treasure. And I will claim any treasures I can for my collection. Tell me, little tool, what is your name."

She turned to walk away from him. "I'm Haku. And I'm a boy."

Naruto inhaled deeply. "No you're not," he said, making her turn back to him. "The nose knows. Especially mine."

As she walked away, ignoring him, Naruto turned to the crying boy in the cage next to him.

"Why do you keep pushing them?" the boy asked. "You can't win against Gato."

Naruto sighed. "Inari, you need to learn to stand a little higher. If you can't learn to live through your suffering, then why are you even still alive?"

Inari's breathing hitched as he looked at Naruto, the confident power he seemed to exude.

" _Dormin, is there any point in laying low now?"_

" _No."_

Naruto reached forward, receiving a shock from the cage. He laughed and pulled back. "That's a fun seal. Hey, Shaman!" he shouted. He saw the shaman turn across the warehouse. "I told you, you're a shaman before a shinobi. You're containing my magic, and suppressing my chakra. But these seals only stop me from forming jutsu. They're not strong enough to stop me from releasing my seals!"

His palm glowed. A torrent of water ripped apart the cage, as well as half the warehouse.

The Shaman braced himself as debris flew at him. He looked through the dust as a horned figure stood above the chaos. An orange glow pierced the haze, two glowing eyes narrowed dangerously at him. The horns shrank until they were no more, leaving blood dripping from his forehead, but the glow remained.

"You wanted me. You have me. What's your plan now?" Naruto asked. He looked around as thugs recovered and surrounded him. Reaching up, he wiped blood away and formed hand signs. "That's a stupid plan. Summoning!"

Smoke blinded everyone before clearing away in a sudden gust. Leathery wings stretched out as the creature stood behind Naruto. Its eyeless face wrinkled as it inhaled deeply. And all sound was drowned out as it let out a twisted screech.


	10. Chapter 10

**[A/N] It has been… so very long, my dear friends. I'll probably give this same spiel in my other stories whenever those get updated, and I really hope that's soon. But I doubt it. I realize I haven't posted in a while and I apologize for that. Outside of my own original writing, I just don't have much spare time in the day.**

 **Looking back at Insanity and Nightmare of Time, for anyone that remembers those, that does seem to be a trend once I get really invested in these. I get into them, and then everything else gets in the way. I'll figure it out and work through it though.**

 **I was going to work on I Chose Rapture and get a chapter out for that first, but I'm having trouble deciding what to do with it at the moment. I know where I want the story to get to, but getting there is just causing me some trouble. And I really don't want to quit with it as I did with Insanity and Nightmare of Time. I've learned from my mistakes and realize that if I take it down until I'm ready to keep going, it will most likely sit in my folders untouched. I don't want that for these stories.**

 **If anyone would like to become a beta reader or maybe take on some sort of ghostwriter/cowriter position for any of my stories I would be appreciative. I say ghostwriter because I still know what I want to do with these stories and have no intention of putting them up for adoption. I'm mostly just looking for help with doing the writing and editing, not do it all for me. If this sounds like something you might be up to, send me a message and we can talk it out.**

 **Anyways, I'll get on with it.**

 **To the Guest reviewer PersonNInjaLux: The bold and italics at the start of every new scene comes from just after my first fanfiction, The Price of Your Betrayal. I originally only used *break* to separate my scenes. After that first fanfiction, I started using the bold and italics instead of *break*. And since I never used the editor on this site, it was a long time before I learned how to add line breaks. Even after I learned how, I decided to still keep** _ **this**_ **.**

 **The Guest Reviewer** **blazeddud3: I think you mean number 8. That would be Kuromori. Number 7 was Hydrus, the electric eel.**

 **To Shaggy the Kidd: I'm glad I could come up with something to help. As I said in the first chapter, I was so disappointed to find so few of this crossover. As for the Trico, I'm not sure if they'll make an appearance. IF they do, I have some ideas about how they would show up, but I'll burn that bridge when I get to it. I like burning bridges.**

 **On with the show.**

* * *

 _ **Naruto**_ stood among the wreckage as the warehouse began collapsing around him. His summon's wings shook the supports left standing as it towered over the thugs and mercenaries.

"This place is coming down," the shaman said. "Secure the rest of the cargo while I handle the cursed one. Get the shipment out of here, now."

"What do we do about the summon?" one of the mercenaries asked.

As if in answer to the question, spears of ice were launched at the summon. It's wings folded in, the iron armor coating them protecting it from harm.

"Let the tool handle the bat. Get to work."

* * *

 ** _Sasuke_ **stood on a branch, looking out into the distance. He watched another explosion blow from the warehouse, threatening to plunge the structure into the ocean. He tried to leap forward and save his friend only to be stopped by Kakashi again.

"I know this means a lot to you, but remember my order. I have to stay with Tazuna, so if I dispell down there, you get out while you can," Kakashi said. "We can't lose you both."

"I won't leave him behind!" Sasuke shouted, reaching up to grab his head as a migraine threatened to take over.

"Sasuke-"

"I will not leave him behind," he said coldly. He turned to Kakashi, glaring at his teacher as the Sharingan burned in his eyes.

* * *

 _ **Ice**_ tore through the ground, launching up at the bat. It's wings folded in, guarding against the waves of ice. It shattered against the metal-clad wings, bathing the warehouse in light as it poured in and reflected through the cloud of ice.

"Tetsukōmori, you alright?" Naruto asked, stepping between his summon and Haku.

The bat's wings opened again, revealing a twisted grin on Tetsukōmori's face. "Do you really need to ask?"

Naruto shrugged. "Who else is gonna look after your health old girl? You certainly don't." He turned his attention to Haku. "You and me now, willing tool. Just you and my collec-" He cut himself off, throwing his arms up as he blocked a heavy punch from the shaman.

' _So powerful,'_ Naruto thought. ' _The impact is making my arms go numb.'_

"You should have stayed in your cage, cursed one," the shaman said, his bloodshot eyes glaring at Naruto from behind the mask.

"And you should have stayed on your knees at your mistress' feet." He shifted his weight, reaching forward, and grabbed the shaman's arms. Pulling sharply, he slammed him into the ground.

The shaman pulled his wrists free of his grip, lashing out at Naruto's legs. He forced Naruto's feet out from under him as he hit him in the shins. Twisting his body, he jumped back to his feet and stood over Naruto.

Pulling a kunai, Naruto stabbed at the shaman's legs, digging the blade in deep.

"Worthless cur!" the shaman shouted, bringing his knee into Naruto's face and putting him on his back.

Naruto rolled away from the shaman, throwing several kunai. As the shaman lept away, he unsealed the Kubikiribōchō. Taking a moment to steady himself, he took a wide stance. His hands gripped close to the blade.

"That blade seems a little large for you, cursed one," the shaman said.

Naruto tried to keep a straight face, though his lips pulled into a gin. "That's what she said," he chuckled out. "I'm sorry. You made that way too easy."

The shaman grit his teeth and charged in once more. He twisted his body, narrowly avoiding the swing of Naruto's sword. Landing on his hands behind Naruto, he pushed himself back into the air. The back of his foot caught the boy in the back of the head as he came back down, sending him face-first into the ground.

Securing his footing again, the shaman stood over Naruto. "Go to sleep, cursed child!" He raised his foot to stomp on his head.

"Naruto!" Tetsukōmori shouted, turning to the shaman.

A wall of ice sprouted in front of the giant bat as Haku blocked off any hope of helping Naruto. Her wings thrashed outward, slamming into the ice and shattering it. As the ice went flying she heard a violent scream.

Haku fell back, creating platforms of ice to land on. She turned to see the shaman tackled to the ground. Recognizing Sasuke, she watched in stunned silence as he began wildly smashing his fists into the mask.

His voice cracked as he let out another cry of rage. Blood poured down the sides of the mask, as much from Sasuke's hands as the shaman's face underneath. His Sharingan burned furiously, glaring down into the eyes of the shaman with malice and hate. He ignored the pain for as long as he could, finally stopping as one of his hands crumpled against the unyielding wood.

He looked down at his hand, falling silent. His eyes were transfixed by the blood. By the wound he never felt through his rage. The world had gone mute for Sasuke. The rampage going on around him blurred away.

Haku shook herself of her shock, launching herself back at Tetsukōmori. She created several spears and sent them flying.

Tetsukōmori wrapped herself in her wings again, her iron wings swinging open to shatter the ice and batter Haku away.

The shaman reached up, grabbing the collar of Sasuke's shirt. He pulled himself up, slamming his mask into the boy's forehead. Throwing Sasuke to the side, he quickly lept back to his feet.

As the world came flooding back in, Sasuke's mouth went wide in a silent cry. He curled into a ball. With what little strength he had left in him, he grabbed his wrist tightly, trying to numb the pain.

"Worthless cur!" the shaman yelled, kicking Sasuke in the back. He breathed heavily, looking down at the boy. "I never did sense any magic in you, but maybe our queen can make use of you."

Pain ripped through his chest a moment later as the shaman looked down to see an ethereal chain tearing through his cloak. He turned to see the chain extending from Naruto's palm.

Without words or even an expression on his face, Naruto jumped into the air and pulled the shaman with him. The chain unraveled around them in wide arcs. Waving his arms back and for, he bound the shaman tight.

"Tetsukōmori!" Naruto shouted, pulling the shaman close.

Haku turned to see Naruto diving toward the bat with his opponent in tow. She heard the wind howling before being battered to the side once again by the ironclad wings.

Tetsukōmori stretched her wings wide as Naruto came in close to her chest. "Within this beast of ore, we shall swallow your screams and agony in our embrace! Needle Jizō!" she called out. The fur on the inside of her wings grew long, wild, and sharp.

Chakra flowed from Naruto's body as it swirled around him and the shaman. "Collaboration; Iron Maiden!" Naruto yelled. He detached himself from the chains, launching him into Tetsukōmori's chest as he was still wrapped in chains.

The shaman spat up blood as his body was impaled on the fur. He reached out at Naruto one last time before the wings closed around him. There was a scream cut short as Tetsukōmori's wings sealed together.

Naruto landed near Sasuke, looking down at his friend. He turned to see Haku staring at him from across the wreckage. His eyes finally returned to their light blue as he created a clone.

The clone knelt down, lifting Sasuke over its shoulder.

He watched from the corner of his eye as the clone lept up into the rafters and disappeared, his gaze never leaving Haku. As he stepped forward, Tetsukōmori opened her wings and dropped the shaman's body at his feet.

"Thank you, Tetsukōmori. The rest of the children, if you would?"

Without a word, the creature took off, tearing away the rest of the roof with it.

"Just you and I now, willing tool," Naruto said. He took a knee, pulling the mask from the shaman, a look of disappointment on his face as he realized the cloak was completely destroyed. It took a moment to shake away most of the blood. "He won't interrupt us again. You said that Zabuza gave you purpose. But when you become a broken tool, one he casts aside, would you serve any willing to give you another?"


End file.
